I
cannot be certain if it is some disorder or the other, but I have always had a
rather keen fascination with those who choose to spend their lives outside the
law. Robin Hood is a childhood hero, along with his band of outlaws, and I simply
idolize Batman (Bruce Wayne) and Green Arrow (Oliver Queen). Then I met the Dúnedain,
the Rangers in the North, Aragorn and his kinsman from the Lord of the Rings, and
I was completely enchanted.
Give
me assassins, outlaws, vigilantes, and grim protectors in the forest, and I admire
them all. Yet, most recently, I have found myself increasingly enthralled by the
adventures of marauding pirates. Often enough, I can be found at my desk, enraptured
with daydreams of a life upon the stormy seas. So I ask myself - why this sudden
captivation? And I believe I can fathom the answer. I blame Jack Sparrow, Captain
Flint, and Edward Kenway.
Yo-Ho-Ho
For I
believe that it is not just me, but millions upon millions around the world, who
have been so gripped with swashbuckling, adrenaline pumping, town looting, pirate
mania. And why should we not? We have been treated, after all, to four Pirates of
the Caribbean movies, the latest installment in the Assassin’s Creed saga - Black
Flag, and a brilliant new TV show by Starz
- Black Sails.
Johnny
Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow was a truly refreshing delight in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse
of the Black Pearl, and he has continued to entertain in the three sequels
since. I for one, have completely enjoyed each installment, most particularly Depp’s
performance in the second movie - Pirates of the
Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, even if the movie itself could arguably have been
better. And while there has been widespread criticism, I relish each new sequel
and simply cannot wait for the fifth - Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men
Tell No Tales - to come out.
Just
in case you have lived on the moon this past decade, the other two movies in
the franchise are: Pirates
of the Caribbean: At World’s End (3rd) and Pirates of the
Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (4th).
And a Bottle of Rum
From
movies to games, and we discover Assassin’s Creed IV:
Black Flag, the sixth major installment in the breathtakingly awesome
series. The game follows Edward Kenway’s adventures in early 18th
century Caribbean, towards the end of the Golden Age of Piracy, and is the
fullest world ever created for the game series. I cannot say anything about the
game or the Assassin’s Creed franchise that hasn’t already been said before, so
I’ll focus on what is relevant to this particular blog post.
If you
weren’t already in love with a pirate’s life, you will be once you play this
game. In addition to all else that is good about it, I loved the fact that they
included Edward ‘Blackbeard’ Thatch, a character I could relate to from the
movie, Pirates of
the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.
A Pirate’s Life for Me!
If you,
like me, enjoy following certain characters around on various entertainment mediums,
you will definitely relish watching Black Sails while you play Assassin’s Creed IV:
Black Flag. Captain Charles Vane, Benjamin Hornigold, John ‘Calico Jack’
Rackham, and Anne Bonny are characters common to both the game and the TV show.
Even
with only 4 episodes aired so far, the show is excellent and promises to get better
still. And if nothing else, it has made one fact abundantly clear for me - in Captain
Jack Sparrow’s immortal words, ‘It’s a pirate’s life for me, savvy?’
Please, do feel free to comment below and share if you feel the same fascination with pirates, or submit your posts to me as guest bloggers at: umair.mirxa@gmail.com, regardless of what you choose to write about.
